No. 19 New Mexico slips past Fresno State

Fresno, CA (Sports Network) - Cameron Bairstow made a late go-ahead basket
and No. 19 New Mexico scored the game's final nine points to escape Save Mart
Center with a 54-48 victory over the upset-minded Fresno State Bulldogs.

Tony Snell, Alex Kirk and Kendall Williams all scored 10 points for the Lobos
(21-4, 8-2 MWC), who avoided losing back-to-back games after falling at UNLV
on Saturday.

The matchup between the first and last place teams in the Mountain West
Conference was surprisingly tight, as Fresno State (8-15, 2-8) held an 11-
point halftime lead before being limited to shooting just 28 percent from
the field after the break.

Kevin Olekaibe hit three of the Bulldogs' nine 3-pointers en route to a game-
high 11 points, while Kevin Foster added 10 points and 10 rebounds in defeat.